Red Mansion: I am Jia Lian

Chapter 477: Busyness before the Release
The rich East drove the colonists crazy. If there was a one in ten thousand chance, the colonists would be willing to give it a try.

Although Churchill said not to anger the Eastern Empire and was extremely afraid in his heart, he still tried hard to find even the slightest possibility.

The artillery in front of him, even though it had not fired a single shot, had already made him lose all confidence.

Sixteen 8,000-jin cannons were enough to tear apart any warships that tried to approach. The sturdy gun emplacements and the straw bags prepared nearby could be filled with sand at any time to form a buffer protection.

This is a well-equipped and well-trained army, and the black triangular bayonets are clarifying the truth.

Churchill also keenly discovered that the rifles in the soldiers' hands did not have gunpowder pools, indicating that they were not flintlock mechanisms, but another more advanced firing device.

God knows, in order to scare the British, Jia Lian moved all the percussion-cap rifles to Tianjin and equipped the garrison.

If Churchill knew that there were more advanced breech-loading rifles, he would probably be terrified.

The telescope can see the sea surface and the slipway in the distance, where workers are busy building a warship similar to the size of a third-class battleship.

Churchill counted and found that there were four slipways in total, which means that four ships were built at a time.

There may still be a gap in shipbuilding capacity compared to the UK, but we must see that this country has great potential. Similar slipways can be added at any time if we are willing.

Churchill wrote down his impressions of the day in a report that night, and suggested that the cabinet strictly abide by the agreement reached with the Zhou Empire. Otherwise, Britain's development in the East would be in catastrophic trouble.

"I didn't meet Sassoon in Guangzhou this time. I decided to meet him when I return to get a good understanding of the country's strength. Although he may not say much truth." After writing this, Churchill put away his quill and packed the letter to Wayne. Wayne wanted to stay for a long time, but he had to go south first, rest for a while and then return to England.

The matter of Jia Lian's posting had been decided, but the location was controversial. In principle, he would be assigned to a position where there was a vacancy.

The Ministry of Personnel prepared several options, but they were all rejected by the emperor.

The Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel had no choice but to go to Zhang Tingen because he was in charge of the Ministry of Personnel.

Zhang Tingen looked at a few options and said nothing, "Choose again. First, we want to be close to the sea. Second, we don't want to be a governor."

If you don't want a provincial governor, then it has to be a provincial governor. The flames of jealousy burned fiercely in the heart of the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel. How old is he?
The governor is of the third rank. Oh, he is already of the third rank. That’s fine.

All I can say is that Jia Lian was promoted so quickly that many people's eyes were red and bleeding.

After another two days of hard work, the Ministry of Personnel made some adjustments and finally came up with three options: Fujian, Guangdong, and Shandong.

The governor of Shandong, those who know all know that Jia Lian went there to investigate the case. At present, not to mention the governor, the provincial governors are all acting. The Ministry of Personnel means that the terms of the governors of Fujian and Guangdong have expired. How to adjust it depends on the candidate for the governor of Shandong. To be frank, Jia Lian can choose whatever he wants, and he will be the first one.

The Ministry of Personnel has already faced up to the reality. The Prime Minister is a teacher and the emperor's most trusted young minister. It is not worth getting angry with him.

Zhang Tingen took a look and picked up the paper: "Wait!"

He strolled to the palace and asked to see the emperor. Emperor Chenghui was having a headache. Jia Lian's departure was a small matter. Who would be in charge of the R&D department? How should the two princes choose?

It can only be said that the work submitted by the two princes is very good. Li Yuanzhu went deep into the grassroots and understood the hardships of craftsmen and grassroots officials. He thought it was reasonable to treat them well. Jia Lian's treatment was not as outrageous as the rumors outside. After all, this is an important place for manufacturing national heavy equipment. The only flaw is that too much power is delegated to the people below, which makes it easy for them to be deceived. Supervision needs to be improved.

Li Heng's report was relatively simple and straightforward. In terms of management, Jia Lian was the best in the country, not to mention in the capital. In terms of fighting, he was invincible and had never lost a battle. Didn't he know better than me what weapons the soldiers needed? He wanted me to improve the R&D center that he built? I really don't have the nerve to say that. Li Heng had a sentence in his report: "Maintaining the status quo is the greatest success."

As for how to maintain the status quo, Li Heng did not say anything, and Emperor Chenghui was so angry that he wanted to curse his mother. Unfilial son, who are you trying to be?

Just then Zhang Tingen arrived, and Emperor Chenghui handed him the report: "My dear ministers, please take a look!"

Zhang Tingen handed the Ministry of Personnel's options to the emperor and picked up the report to read it himself. After reading the two reports carefully, Emperor Chenghui looked at him with eyes expecting him to praise his son.

"Your Highness is a gentleman. It is a great honor to admit one's mistakes and correct them. The Third Prince is honest and straightforward, and very humorous."

Well, forget about getting advice from Zhang Tingen. The master and the apprentice both used the same method when it came to the prince. Don't ask, because if you ask, it's just the emperor's arbitrary decision.

"Shandong, right?" Emperor Chenghui didn't really ask, but pointed at the piece of paper.

Zhang Ting'en frowned slightly, "I think Guangdong is better. Someone should keep an eye on Wang Ziteng to prevent him from being unscrupulous. The current governor, Li Ning, is too mild."

Emperor Chenghui thought for a moment and said, "Shandong is close! If I need to find him, I can send him the letter in a few days."

Zhang Ting'en still advised: "There is the Kong family in Shandong. With Jia Lian's troublemaking, I'm afraid he will cause trouble that is out of control."

This sentence was still very convincing. Emperor Chenghui pondered for a while and sighed: "It is true. I will tell him. It is better to go to Shandong. It is closer!"

Zhang Ting'en saw how the emperor treated him in the past from Emperor Chenghui's attitude towards Jia Lian. He decided to give a final advice: "Why not put him in Jiangbei? There is Prime Minister Sun to keep him under control."

This sentence worked. Emperor Chenghui was indeed moved, but not Jiangbei. He said, "Jiangnan, he likes to make trouble, let him make trouble in Jiangnan. Doesn't he like practical learning? Let him spread it in Jiangnan. Speaking of which, with Prime Minister Sun and Jia Lian, I am really looking forward to it."

"Jia Lian's ancestral home is Jinling! The principle of serving as an official in a different place cannot be broken." Zhang Tingen was speechless.

Emperor Chenghui smiled and said, "Of course I know the principle of serving as an official in a different place. Jia Lian was born and raised in the capital, so he is not considered a Jiangnan person. Besides, Lin Ruhai is from Suzhou, and he also served as the Imperial Censor of the Salt Road, right?"

Can it be the same? Zhang Ting'en thought about it and decided not to persuade him. He just suggested: "Let's go to the cabinet meeting." Emperor Chenghui nodded. It was either Shandong or Jiangnan. Forget about other places. Is Guangdong not good? It's not. Emperor Chenghui still took it into consideration. Jia Lian's wife's surname is Wang. Relatives, even if the bones are broken, the tendons are connected.

After this question was raised at the cabinet meeting, there were indeed different opinions. Jia Lian's transfer was good news, but no one agreed to send him to Jiangnan. Shandong was not a good choice either. All five cabinet members thought Guangdong was the most suitable place. Such a consensus certainly meant that the farther Jia Lian went, the better. In fact, everyone had basically the same opinion. Now was the key to opening up Nanyang. Wasn't Jia Lian the person who supported it the most? It was the most suitable person for him to be the governor of Guangdong.

As for Shandong, it was directly ruled out. No cabinet minister wanted Jia Lian to go to Shandong. Was it because they were worried that it was too close, or for some other reason? No one mentioned it tacitly.

In short, since Your Majesty has launched the Southward Advance Policy, you should send the most supportive and capable ministers.

Emperor Chenghui knew that Zhang Tingen must have done some preparation in advance, but he did not insist on his opinion. So let Guangdong be Guangdong.

The cabinet acted quickly, sending the document to the Ministry of Personnel, processing the procedures quickly, and calling Jia Lian to go through the process. The reason was very strong, even if he had to go by land, he could still make it to Guangzhou to celebrate the New Year.

Really, what is it like to travel to Guangzhou by land these days?

Normally, you go from Hebei to Henan, then to Hubei and Hunan. Then there are two options, one is to go through Guangxi and take the road to Guilin and Wuzhou, and the other is to go through Shaoguan.

No matter which route you take, as long as you travel by land, you will basically spend two months on the road.

Of course Jia Lian would not travel by land. He would naturally go to Tianjin and take a ship south.

Emperor Chenghui did not say much about Jia Lian's choice. He called him into the palace and had a conversation. The general idea was that the cabinet thought it was more appropriate for him to go to the south, and he had to shoulder the heavy responsibility of developing Nanyang. According to the agreement reached with Britain and France, Nanyang could be recovered if it could be recovered, but if it could not be recovered, it should not be forced, and personal safety must be guaranteed first.

Jia Lian didn't say much. So what? Guangdong was Guangdong. He would definitely be sent away anyway, whether it was farther or nearer. After all, many people would go crazy if he continued to stay in the capital.

"I have already made arrangements for winter vegetables. As long as there is land in the royal farm, they will be planted this year. I will make clear the manpower and technology." Jia Lian only mentioned this matter to hint to the emperor that this money should be earned into the treasury, so don't ruin an important source of income to take care of some irrelevant relatives. Don't be soft-hearted.

Emperor Chenghui understood what he meant and glared at him unhappily: "You bastard, do I still need you to teach me?"

The stimulation was effective, and Jia Lian remained silent. If nothing unexpected happened, this business would fail in three years at most.

Forget it, it won’t have anything to do with me at that time. Anyway, I have the technology in my hands, so I can just grow it myself when the time comes.

No matter who farms, the Jia family will have a share of the income. But I am worried that the people working below will be treated worse than before after Jia Lian left.

Jia Lian was going to Guangdong, and someone was worried. Who was it? Aunt Xue.

What about the promised matter of Baochai? Wang Xifeng is really good at procrastinating. If she delays any further, the matter will fall through.

So Aunt Xue went to the Jia Mansion again and found Wang Xifeng to ask her.

Wang Xifeng had really been dragging her feet. When asked, she finally gave a firm answer: "You can take me as a concubine, and I'll give her a status, but you don't have to live in the Jia Mansion. Buy me a house outside, and I'll pay for it."

Aunt Xue objected immediately: "No, that won't work. Anyway, what's the big deal if she doesn't go to the Jia Mansion? Besides, does the Xue family need that little money to buy a house? Anyway, since Lian'er is being sent out, we can just let Baochai go with him. But this matter must be handled quickly. If you still don't agree, I'll go and talk to the old lady. Right now, the eldest wife only has one great-grandson, and the old lady is looking forward to Lian'er having many children."

Wang Xifeng was also worried that Aunt Xue would make a fuss. After all, she had agreed and then went back on her word, which was somewhat in the wrong.

When Jia Lian came back from the palace, Wang Xifeng stepped forward and said shyly: "Let's arrange for Baochai to enter the mansion in the next two days. After all, it's a concubine, so don't be too picky about the date."

If Wang Xifeng hadn't mentioned this, Jia Lian would have almost forgotten it. He has been too busy recently, with too many things to arrange. And as for Lavoisier, Jia Lian also gave him a record book and asked him to deal with it. Just don't get yourself killed. Things like winter vegetables are actually the least important in Jia Lian's mind.

"Okay, you decide on the arrangements. I've been too busy lately." Jia Lian answered casually, and then added, "I won't bring the children with me this time when I go south. I'll only bring a few maids."

After hearing this, Wang Xifeng finally nodded with some satisfaction: "Let's do it this way." There was one question she didn't ask: how to arrange for the few beauties in the south of the city.

Jia Lian didn't have time to go to the south of the city. He went to Youshi's place to say goodbye in the evening, but was stopped on the way when he left in the middle of the night. He was taken to Qinshi's place. Qin Keqing was really anxious because she hadn't gotten pregnant. The family line was really cut off, and the blame was on Qinshi.

Fortunately, Jia Lian had accumulated a lot of resources recently, and he had managed to hold on through the continuous fighting.

There was still some time left, so Jia Lian also gave instructions on arranging the ships to go south. Emperor Chenghui directly notified them to go south on the warship sent by the British, just in time to test the training results of the officers and soldiers of the Tianjin Navy. For safety reasons, he also asked the British fleet to leave later and wait for Jia Lian to go south together.

During the preparation period, the palace also sent a lot of pills, all of which were medicines for dealing with the so-called malaria. I can only say that the emperor was very considerate.

Wang Xifeng went through the process quickly to choose a date, which was considered a formal treatment for Baochai to be brought into the family. Unlike the other concubines whose status was raised by maids, the contract documents also had to be written so that she could be buried in the ancestral tomb in the future.

This was proposed and insisted upon by Baochai.

Jia Lian was busy using his power for personal gain, forming his own governor's standard bearer, taking fifty officers from the Shenji Camp and bringing fifty family generals. The R&D Department directly brought twenty-four 12-jin field guns and two thousand percussion cap guns. The French cannon was not brought, as it was basically obsolete in Europe now, so if they wanted it, they could just make it in Guangzhou.

Two days before leaving Beijing, Jia Lian, who was very busy, returned home. Everything was ready. Since he was not getting married, there was no big ceremony. Everyone in the mansion could have a feast, including the servants. No outsiders were invited. Baochai was just carried into the house in a sedan chair. The courtyard was also on the north side. When Baochai came here, she always stayed there. It took five minutes to walk to Jia Lian's courtyard, which showed how big the Jia Mansion was.

Baochai, under her veil, sat in front of a red candle, waiting quietly, listening to the noise outside. She thought she would have to wait for a long time, but unexpectedly, she only waited for an hour before hearing footsteps outside.

Jia Lian came in to take a look and found that except for the fact that there was no extravagant arrangement, all other arrangements were mostly made according to the standards for marrying a wife.

Looking at Baochai sitting quietly, Jia Lian's emotions fluctuated slightly. The impression left by that TV series was too deep.

(End of this chapter)